Tube-welding apparatus



2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

P.G.PATTBRS0N. TUBE WELDING APPARATUS.

Patented Nov.. 16, 1897.

(No Model.)

(No Model.)

2. sheets-sheen 2. P. C. PATTERSON.

TUBE WELDING APPARATUS.

Patented NQV. 16, 1897.

inluonms versus co. Puoqurrw.. wnsnmcmn. D. c.

UNITED 4STATES PATENTA Erica e TUBE-WELDING APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 593,967, dated November 16, 1897-. Application led May 4, 1896. Serial No. 590,215. (No model.)

To all whom if may concern:

. Be it known that I, PETER CHARLES PAT- TERsON, a resident of McKeesport, in the county of lAllegheny and VState of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Tube-WeldingApparatusg and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description thereof.

My invention relates to tube-weldin g apparatus, its object being to provide apparatus for lthe manufacture of lap weld tubing adapted to receive and weld the skelp into tubing` without the necessity of turning the skelp over in the furnace, which is liable to bend or twist the skelp out of shape, so that it will not feed properly to the welding-rolls,`

and in this way to provide for more rapid work and consequent increase in output of the plant, more uniform quality of pipe, and decrease in loss from stickers and imperfect pipe.

My invention consists, generally stated, in combining with a furnace having a plurality of openings arranged side by side-in the front end thereof a transversely-moving carriage carrying welding-rolls and a motor for operating the saine, guiding means between the furnace and welding-rolls, and mandrel-feeding apparatus and mechanism for operating same, whereby the welding mechanism may travel across the front of the furnace in position to receive the skelp from any one of said openings, guide it to the rolls, weld it, and provide for its delivery. It also comprises other improvements hereinafter set forth.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will describe the same more fully, referring to the accompanying drawings, in whichi Figure 1 is a plan view of the apparatus. Fig. 2 is a side view. Fig. 3 is a cross-section on line 3 3, Fig. l. Fig. 4 is an enlarged plan View of the front end of the apparatus; and Fig. 5 is a side view looking in direction of arrow, Fig. 4.

Like letters and numerals indicate like parts in each ofthe figures.

The letter a designates a suitable heatingfurnace having a plurality of openings or guiding-grooves a', arranged side by side in the front Wall thereof. The skelp b are arranged side by side on the floor of the furvtric or other power motor i.

nace opposite the openings a. The skelp b may be introduced into the furnace a from the opposite end by suitable charging apparatus, such as set forth in an application filed by me of even date, Serial No. 590,216. The skelp are introduced into the furnace With their scarfed edges up, so that no injury results from the rolling or turning over of the skelp in the furnace to present the scarfed edges properly to the Welding-rolls, and they remain in the furnace in this position until fed to the welding apparatus. The soleplates c Whichsupport the apparatus are supported on the foundation-Walls d. Mounted on the sole-plates c and walls CZ are the transverse rails c', upon which the wheels e2 of the carriage E move. Mounted on the front end of the carriage E are the housings f, within which are journaled the welding-rolls f', said rolls having the shafts or necks f2. naled in the housings g are the large cogwheels g', having shafts g2, which are coupled to the roll-shafts f2 by boxes f3. A large gear- Wheel h on the lower shaft g2 meshes with Jourthe pinion h on the shaft "of a suitable elec- This motori is preferably mounted on the carriage E and travels with the carriage as itis moved transversely, so as to bring the rolls and their guide j in line with the different furnaceopenings. The outer end of the shaft f1," carries the fly-wheel t2. Also preferably sup` ported on the carriage or the roll-housings f and projecting out toward the furnace a, close to its opening a', is the guide j, which travels with the carriage and the welding-rolls f and over which the skelp passes on its Way to the weldin g-rolls. The guidewayj is slightly flaring, its'mouthj being the full width of the openin g a', and it is supported at a slight inoline, the tube-skelp being fed to the rolls at a slight upward incline, as it is found that the rolls grasp it better when so fed. Extending backfrom the welding-rolls f and in line therewith is the trough 7c for supporting the mandrel k and the pipe when welded, which trough is mounted on the long-rearwardly-extending portion E' of the carriage E and supported by the uprights 7a2. In the rear of said trough k are the mandrel-feeding rolls Z Z', one of said rolls Z being mounted in suitable bearings on the standard Z2 and the other roll Z ICO being mounted on the vertical shaft m. This shaft lm is journaled in suitable bearings and has secured at its lower end the pinion m', which meshes with the rack n. This rack n is connected to a piston-rod n', which in turn is connected to a piston working in the cylinder o. In the rear of the rolls L Z is a movable stop p for sustaining the thrust on the mandrel during welding, and back of the stop is a second trough q in line with said first-mentioned trough, back of which trough q is the stationary stop q.

In the preferred construction the carriage E therefore carries the entire apparatus for welding the skelp into pipe, including the rolls and the motor for driving them, the guide between the furnace and the rolls, and the mandrel-bar-operating mechanism, and is complete in itself, requiring only electric or other suitable connection tothe motor, as at i3, and the hose o or sliding or swveling pipes carrying the iiuid to the cylinder 0 for operating the mandrel-bar. The carriage can be moved transversely in front of the furnace, such as that illustrated in the drawings, and is constructed as follows: Journaled in suitable bearings r on the sole-plates cis the shaft r. A cog-wheel s on said shaft r meshes with the teeth of the rack s. The rack s' is attached to the piston-rod s2, connected to a piston working in the cylinder t. The cylinder t rests upon one of the foundation -walls CZ. Pinions uV on the shaft r engage with rack 'v on the lower face of the carriage E.

The operation of my improved apparatus is as follows: Vith the carriage in the position shown in Fig. l the skelp opposite the opening or guiding-groove 3 is the one to be operated on. The mandrel 7c' is provided with a welding-ball ready to be fed forward to bring the ball into welding position between the rolls f f'. rFhe steam is then admitted to the cylinder o, whereupon the rack 'n is drawn back, and the pinion m', meshing with said rack, the roll l is revolved.' The rolls Z l carry forward the mandrel 7c into position between the welding-rolls. After the mandrel is advanced the welding-rolls f are made to revolve through their connections with the motor t'. The tube-skelp is then pushed forward through the opening 3 and up the guideway j to the rolls f. The opening or guiding-groove in the furnace-bottom so directs the front end of the skelp approximately in proper line to the rolls; but the guideway j, moving transversely ,with the rolls, receives the skelp and brings it into exact line, even though the rolls and opening may not be in exact line, the traveling guideway therefore correcting any want of aliuement. The welding then takes place in the ordinary manner, the finished tube being supported within the trough la. Steam is then admitted to the cylinder o, and the rack n is advanced, changing the direction of rotation of the rolls Z Z and drawing the mandrel 7o back into-the trough q. The pipe is then removed from the trough k. Steam is now admitted to the cylinder tto draw back the rack s. The cog-wheel s is thus turned and with it the shaft i. The pinions u on the shaft r, engaging with the rack fu, will move the carriage E over into position to draw the next tube-skelp from the opening 4L of the furnace. The operation just described is repeated and continued until all the skelp have been drawn, when t-he carriage is brought back to begin drawing from opening l, the furnace having been recharged.

By this apparatus I am therefore enabled to provide for the rapid welding of lap-weld tubing by bringing the welding apparatus into line with the different openings of the furnace to receive the skelp therefrom instead of requiring the working of the skelp to the center of the furnace, saving time and obviating the necessity of rolling the highlyheated skelp over in the furnace and the well known difficulties arising therefrom. For these reasons the output can be greatly increased, as each skelp is handled independ e'ntly of the others and can be welded as soon as at proper heat, and while4 the lapped edges of the skelp can be held in the zone of highest heat and a more uniform quality of tubing be produced and the difficulty of the formation of stickers and imperfect pipe overcome to agreat extent. The apparatus makes this possible, as it provides for the moving of the entire welding apparatus on parallel lines in front of the furnace and it provides for 'receiving the pipe in a straight course from the furnace.

Vhile the apparatus has special points of advantage when operated in the way above described, it is evident that it can also be employed to advantage where the skelp is turned or rolled over within the furnace-chamber and the welding mechanism brought into line with one or the other of the two or more openings through which the skelp may be pushed, and it has like advantages when employed in connection with the welding of butt-weld tubing as well as lap-weld tubing. These are intended to be included within the scope of the invention.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. In apparatus for the manufacture of tubing, the combination of a skelp-heating furnace, a transversely-movin g carriage in front of said furnace, welding-rolls on said carriage adapted to be moved into line with a plurality of skelps in the furnace, mandrel-feeding mechanism on said carriage back of said rolls, and power'apparatus for operating said mandrel-feeding mechanism, substantially as set forth.

2. In apparatus for the manufacture of tubing, the combination of a skelp-heating furnace, a transversely-moving carriage in front of said furnace, welding-rolls on said carriage adapted to be moved into line with a plurality of slzelps in the furnace, and mandrel-feed- IOO IIO

ving mechanism on said carriage back of said rolls, and power apparatus for operating said mandrel-feeding mechanism on said carriage, substantially as set forth.

3. In apparatus for the manufacture of tubing, t-he combination with a skelp-heating furnace of a transversely moving carriage in front thereof, welding-rolls on said carriage adapted to be moved. into line with a plurality of skelps in the furnace, a motor on said carriage for driving said welding-rolls, mandrel-feeding mechanism and power mechanism for operating the same on said carriage, and iieXible connections between said motor and mandrel-feeding mechanism and their respective sources of supply, substantially as set forth.

4. In apparatus for the manufacture of tubing, the combination with a 'skelp-heating furnace of a transversely moving carriage in front thereof, welding-rolls on said carriage adapted to be brought into line with a plurality of skelps in the furnace, mandrel-feeding rolls', a shaft on which one of said rolls is mounted, a power-cylinder on the carriage and connections between said power-cylinder and said shaft, substantially as set forth.

5. In apparatus for the manufacture of tubing, the combination with a skelp-heating furnace, of a transversely-moving carriage in front thereof, welding-rolls on said carriage adapted to be moved into line with a plurality of skelps in the furnace, mandrel-feeding rolls on said carriage, power mechanism on the carriage and connections between the saine and. the mandrel-feeding rolls, substantially as set forth.

6. In apparatus for the manufacture of tubing, the combination with a skelp-heating furnace, of a transversely-moving carriage in front thereof carrying welding-rolls and also carrying the trough lo and trough q, mandrelfeeding rolls between said troughs, a powercylinder on the carriage and-rack-and-pinion connections between the cylinder and one of said rolls, substantially as set forth.

7. In apparatus for the manufacture of tubing, the combination with a skelp-heating furnace, of a transversely-moving carriage in front of saidfurnace carrying welding-rolls, and carrying rack-bars, a longitudinally-extending shaft having pinions, engaging with said rack-bars and a power-cylinder mounted at one side of the carriage and having a rack engaging with the pinion on said shaft, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I, the said vPETER CHARLES PATTERSON, have hereunto set my hand.

4PETER CHARLES PATTERSON.

- Witnesses:

ROBERT C. ToTTEN, WALTER FAMARIss. 

